


Blood Moon

by TheUnforgiven



Category: Aldnoah.Zero (Anime & Manga)
Genre: Gen, Lunar Eclipse, M/M, Post-Canon, Post-Ep24, Post-Series, Rayleigh Scattering, you can really read their relationship however you want jsyk
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2017-04-23
Updated: 2017-04-23
Packaged: 2018-10-23 04:10:43
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,440
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/10711914
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/TheUnforgiven/pseuds/TheUnforgiven
Summary: Slaine wakes up in the middle of the night to find that Inaho has, without any prior warning, arranged to have him taken out of prison for a few hours to view a lunar eclipse.





	Blood Moon

**Author's Note:**

> Okay, so I actually started this fic a _long_ time ago, after the end of the first season. There was a total lunar eclipse in October of that year, and I was inspired to write this because of that. However, as my rotten luck would have it, the Moon was completely obscured by clouds for the duration of the eclipse, and in my disappointment and annoyance, I never finished this fic. Flash forward to this year; I just finished my rewatch of A.Z recently, and I decided to rework this idea as a post-canon fic. It's honestly much better this way, in my opinion.
> 
> Anyway, there's your brief history of this fic. I hope you enjoy it!

Years of reflex kicked in when Slaine awoke to the squeaking sound of his cell door opening, and he was up and in a defensive stance before he could even think. His heart hammered in his chest with the newly supplied adrenaline.  
  
The guard, midway through the action of opening the door, froze in place, obviously startled. Slaine watched as he took a deep breath through his nose.

“It’s alright,” the guard finally said. “There’s no danger.” Slaine wasn’t inclined to believe him, especially given that he recognized this guard as belonging to the _night_ shift, but he allowed himself to relax a fraction.

“What’s going on, then?” He asked suspiciously.

“He said he wanted to tell you himself…” Slaine’s arms finally dropped back to his sides at that.

“ _Kaizuka Inaho_ ,” he said, more a statement than a question.

“Y-yes.” The guard signaled behind him, and another guard stepped forward. “We’re taking you out,” he said. Slaine sighed, but stepped forward and held his arms out tiredly. The second guard latched the familiar cuffs onto his wrists, and he was led out of his cell, through the narrow hallway that bore the only open window. Slaine looked out as he passed, as he always did, and just as he thought, it was the middle of the night. Something about the view seemed off, though…

He didn’t have enough time to think about it before he was carefully urged on by the guards behind him. He obediently continued on his way down the hallway and into the awful glass room that he was accustomed to visiting far too frequently, but to his surprise, he wasn’t escorted to the table in the center as usual. The guards continued to usher him through the room to the opposite door, where he was temporarily stopped as they undid the heavy lock.

Once the door was open, he was escorted through it and into a dimly lit corridor beyond. Too busy looking at the unfamiliar walls, he didn’t notice Inaho standing in the darkness until he had nearly walked into him. But what was he holding…?

“Where are you taking me?” He finally thought to ask as the guards unlocked his handcuffs. “What is—?” He cut himself off as he finally figured out what was in Inaho’s hands, and he stared at it for long enough that he finally prompted Inaho to speak.

“It’s cold outside, please, put it on,” he said, urging the heavy coat in his hands towards Slaine. It was held out as though Inaho planned to put it on him himself, and that combined with everything else strange about the situation made Slaine continue standing there staring, not moving a muscle. “Slaine.” He started at the sound of his name.

“O-outside?” He stuttered.

“Yes, we’re going out. It’s cold.” The coat was once again moved towards him, and finally, Slaine shuffled forward and slipped his arms through the thick sleeves. Inaho pulled the coat properly up and settled it on his shoulders, and Slaine, uncomfortable with his back to the man, turned to face him again.  
  
He looked questioningly at the extra stripe on Inaho’s sleeves, but if the man noticed his obvious curiosity, he didn’t make any remarks about it. He nodded towards the guards behind Slaine, and the handcuffs were quickly put back on.

“Let’s go.” Inaho turned towards the door. One of the guards standing near it undid the bolts and latches while the other handed Inaho a bundle of something. Slaine didn’t have much time to wonder about what it might be before the door was pulled open, frigid air blasting through the opening and shocking his skin.

Inaho stepped through the door, motioning Slaine to follow after. He stepped slowly after Inaho, eyes immediately searching across the landscape, across the open sky, disbelief coloring his features.

He didn’t realize he’d stopped until Inaho stopped too, motioning for him to follow again. Slaine hurried to catch up.

“T-the guards aren’t going to follow us...?” Slaine wondered aloud, momentarily distracted again by the bright stars. He hadn’t properly seen this open sky in more than two years, and now that he could, it seemed even more ethereal and otherworldly than it ever had.

 “Not this time,” Inaho answered. “I managed to get permission from my superiors to take you out alone tonight, but the handcuffs, unfortunately, were something I could not persuade them out of.”

“Why are you taking me out?” Slaine asked suspiciously, still following as Inaho led him towards a bench that was slowly coming into view.

“There is something I wanted you to see.” They finally reached the bench, and Inaho stopped to turn back towards him, tipping his head to indicate Slaine should sit. He did as he was asked, perching on the cold edge of the bench, and Inaho sat down to his left, uncomfortably close. “Sorry,” he said when Slaine gave him a displeased look. He started to unfold the bundle he had been given. “The blanket is not very big.” He shook it out in one big motion, then settled it over their laps. Slaine wanted to protest about sharing a blanket with _Inaho_ , but he found he was too happy for the extra warmth to say anything. Inaho was right, it was _very_ cold.

Slaine turned his eyes away from Inaho to look up at the sky. Something still seemed _off_ , and as his eyes adjusted further and he finally found the larger fragments of the Moon, he realized why. They were dark. Not like a new moon, but still _dark_ , and Slaine turned his eyes back towards Inaho with the unspoken question.

“There’s a lunar eclipse tonight,” Inaho explained. “I wanted to take you out before the penumbra passed over it, but I was not allowed enough time to view the whole event. I apologize.”

“It’s fine,” Slaine said distractedly. “Why didn’t you say something about it before waking me up in the middle of the night?”

“I thought you might refuse if I suggested it ahead of time.”

“Why would I turn down a chance to go outside?” Inaho shrugged.  
  
“I was under the impression that you hated me,” he said, eye level and betraying nothing. Slaine was taken aback for a moment, but he quickly recovered.

“Well, you would be right about that,” he said, and even to his own ears, it didn’t sound quite genuine. For a split second, when his eyes turned to meet Inaho’s again, he could swear he saw a tiny smile, but the man turned away before he could be sure. “Aren’t you worried I’ll try and run?”

“I don’t think you will. But even if you do, you haven’t been able to properly exercise for quite awhile, and I am certain that I would be able to catch you.”

“Fair enough,” Slaine begrudgingly admitted.

“We will be out here for a few hours,” Inaho said. “If you get too cold, please tell me.”

“What would be the point? Were you planning to cuddle for warmth?” Inaho looked at him, and Slaine could tell that’s exactly what he had planned. “ _No_ , no way.” Inaho frowned.

“Why not?”

“It’s uncomfortable enough just sharing the blanket,” Slaine said sharply.

“It’s only practical to share body heat when temperatures are—”

“Yeah, yeah, I got it. I’d rather freeze, Kaizuka Inaho.”

“…suit yourself,” Inaho finally said.

“So when is the actual eclipse going to start?” Slaine prompted, gazing at the darkened moon fragments.

“The umbra will begin passing over within the next few minutes. Most of the large fragments in the area of the penumbra will be in total eclipse, and those surrounding will be in partial.” Silence stretched between them as Slaine stared up at the sky, embracing the strange feeling of being able to really _look_ at it, like he hadn’t been able to do so long. “Do you know why lunar eclipses appear red?” Inaho finally asked.

“I don’t,” Slaine said.

“It’s the same reason why the sky appears blue.”

“Ah, Rayleigh scattering, you’ve told me,” Slaine said, a hint of annoyance appearing in his tone at the memory.

“Yes, exactly. When sunlight enters Earth’s atmosphere, it encounters molecules and particles which scatter it. The amount of scattering is inversely proportional to the wavelength of the light, and since the violet side of the spectrum has shorter wavelengths, they scatter more readily, creating the blue color of the sky. The Sun, by contrast, appears orange, because the red end of the spectrum has longer wavelengths, and does not scatter as much.”

“ _Yes_ , you’ve told me—”

“However,” Inaho continued. “When the Sun is setting, it is closer to the horizon, and its light must travel a longer path and pass through more atmosphere to reach our eyes. Therefore, most of the shorter wavelengths of light are scattered through the atmosphere as they travel, and only the longer wavelengths manage to reach through to our eyes, creating a red and orange sky.” He paused, seeming to be making sure Slaine understood before he continued. “In a lunar eclipse, the Earth moves directly between the Sun and the Moon, casting a shadow onto the Moon. The Moon would appear completely dark if Earth did not have an atmosphere; however, because Earth _does_ have an atmosphere, it refracts the light from the Sun behind it, which causes it to land on the Moon. And because that light passes through the denser atmosphere, just as it does during the sunset, it causes the Moon to appear red, creating the so-called ‘blood moon’ of a lunar eclipse.” His explanation complete, Inaho finally fell silent. The seconds stretched on before Slaine finally decided to speak.

“Did you bring me out here just to lecture me about science? Because you could’ve done that inside, too. Or better yet, you could not do it at all!”

“I merely thought you would want to know what exactly you were viewing.”

“Don’t you think it takes away from the majesty of it all, though?” Slaine asked, slightly exasperated.

“No, I don’t think so,” Inaho said frankly. “To me, knowing all that goes into creating the phenomena only makes it more incredible.” Slaine was startled by the strangely revering tone. “I have seen Earth from space, I have stood on the scattered fragments of the Moon… but nothing can dull the sense of scale that comes from knowing these things.”

Slaine wasn’t exactly sure how to respond to that, and the thought of being in space still ignited a sense of terrible anxiety in him, but he couldn’t help but begrudgingly agree. That objects as large as stars and planets could move and create this phenomena… it made him feel exactly how tiny and insignificant he was, and there was an odd sense of comfort in the feeling as he gazed up at the fragments of the Moon, which were ever so slowly becoming red.

“Maybe you’re right,” he finally whispered, and the silence descended back on the two of them for a long time.

It wasn’t uncomfortable, but Slaine was still very aware of Inaho sitting beside him, staring up at the same sky that he himself couldn’t take his eyes off of. After the largest fragments of the Moon had finally turned a deep, bloody red, Slaine decided to break the silence again.

“Why did you really bring me out here?” He saw Inaho look at him out of the corner of his vision.

“I told you, I wanted you to see—” Slaine turned to look at him directly in the eye.

“Even if that’s true, you never do anything without ulterior motives.” That seemed to make Inaho pause. He turned back towards the sky, Slaine watching his profile carefully.

“Do you know why it is called a ‘blood moon?’”

“This isn’t the time for more lessons—”

“Answer the question, please.”

“…I suppose it’s just because it’s red?” Slaine ultimately relented.

“That is true, but it’s more than that. Since ancient times, the blood moon has been considered an omen of many things, by many different cultures. Generally a bad omen, but occasionally a good one. For example, many cultures believed that some type of beast had swallowed the Moon, and that it may devour them too unless they scared it away.” Inaho paused, turning back towards Slaine. “They believed this, and so they did what they had to do to restore their Moon in the sky.”

“And…?” Slaine finally prompted when Inaho just stared at him for several long moments.

“Even if the Moon is swallowed, even if it becomes the victim of a beast, or an evil omen, or a sacrifice, or anything else… even if it becomes all of those things, in the end, the Moon always can be saved, and it always is, even if it’s difficult or takes some time. The blood passes away from it, the shadow passes as well, and eventually, its light is restored, just as bright as it once was.” Slaine stared at Inaho, dumbfounded and unsure if he dared believe what he thought Inaho might be implying. Inaho stared back, unblinking and betraying not a single hint.

“What are you…?” Slaine vaguely questioned, unsure what exactly to ask. Inaho finally relented, his eye flicking way from Slaine’s face.

“I’m not good with metaphors,” he said carefully. “And there are _certain things_ that I am prohibited from telling you, but… I hope that you understand what I’m trying to say.” With that, he turned back to looking at the scattered fragments of the Moon. Slaine stared at his profile for a moment longer before he turned back as well.

“Maybe the blood moon gets to be saved, but there’s no going back for the Moon that’s been shattered, right?” He laughed bitterly to himself, and Inaho said nothing. “Still… I think… I think I understand. Thank you.” Inaho nodded once in acknowledgement of the rare gratitude.

Slaine gazed at the reddened Moon, fingers twisting in the blanket over his lap. He didn’t know what to do with the information that Inaho had presumably given him. He was scared, terrified really, that any glimmer of hope handed down to him would only result in more suffering, like it always had.

Yet, somehow, looking at the bloody Moon and feeling Inaho’s still form beside him, he felt he might just have the strength to allow himself to believe in a small hope again. It wasn’t much to hold onto, but it was something, and it was certainly more than he had had to hold onto for years.

Maybe that was all he really needed right now.


End file.
